Aminomethyleneaminomaleonitriles

ABSTRACT

2-Amino-3-(substitutedaminomethyleneamino)maleonitriles are obtained by reaction of diaminomaleonitrile with N-substituted carboxamides in the presence of POCl3. The compounds are useful as herbicides or can be converted to dicyanoimidazoles useful for synthesis of purine alkaloids.

United States Patent Begland Oct. 21, 1975 AMINOMETHYLENEAMINOMALEONI- [56] References Cited 7 TRILES UNITED STATES PATENTS [75] Inventor: Robert Walter Begland, 2,534,331 12/ 1950 Woodward 260/309 Wilmington, 3,564,039 2/ 1971 Webster 260/465.5 R 3.701,797 10/1972 Okada et al 260/465.5 R sSlglleet E. I. Du Pont de Nemours & 3,763,161 10/1973 Hamer 260/465.5 R x Company, Wilmington, Del. 3,778,446 12/1973 Weigen 260/465.5 R X [22] Flled: 1973 Primary Exami'r zer' Joseph P. Brust [21] App]. No.: 386,746 Attorney, Agent, or FirmAnthony P. Mentis Releted U.S. Applicatlon Data 57] ABSTRACT [63] gg gz fig g gg 2-Amin0-3-(substitutedaminomethyleneamino)- maleonitriles are obtained by reaction of diaminomaleonitrile with N-substituted carboxamides 52 US. l 260 465.5 R 71 105; 260 252; l 1 C 6 6 260/M64 1n the presence of POCI The compounds are useful [51] Int Cl li 121/42 as herbicides or can be converted to dicyanoimida- 58 Field 0 6561i;'.'..'.'.'.'.'.'.'..'.1111111111"556/4653 R 464 useful Synthesis Purine alkabids- 4 Claims, No Drawings AMINOMETHYLENEAMINOMALEONITRILES CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application is a continuation-in-part of my copending application Ser. No. 229,556, filed Feb. 25,

1972, now US. Pat. No. 3,806,517, issued Apr. 23, 1974.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field Of The Invention This invention relates to 2-amino-3-(N-substitutedaminomethyleneamino)maleonitriles of the formula wherein R and R are each alkyl of 1 to 4 carbons, cycloalkyl of 3 to 4 carbons, and R is H or a 1-4 carbon alkyl.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART 3-(Dimethylaminomethyleneamino)pyrazine-2 carbonitrile has been reported by Albert & Ohta (J. Chem. Soc., 1971, 3727-3730). This was prepared from the reaction of dimethylformamide and phosphoryl chloride on 3-aminopyrazine-Z-carboxamide or 3-aminopyrazine-Z-carbonitrile.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The aminomethyleneaminomaleonitriles have the formula NC NH,

wherein R and R are each alkyl of 1-4 carbons or cycloalkyl of 3-4 carbons and R is H or a l-4 carbon alkyl. These compounds are obtained by reaction of diaminomaleonitrile(DAMN) with an amide n RCNR'R in the presence of a condensing agent such as POCL', at

temperatures below 100 and preferably not above 50. The reaction involved is: I

Nc NH NC N=C/NRIR2 ,1 .tismi i. Y 'Nc Nu, -1001: NCANH,

DAMN

The amides that can be used contain hydrocarbyl substituents of up to 4 carbons that are inert to the condensing agent. Amides that can be employed include N,N-di-n-butylacetamide, N,N-diethylvaleramide, N,N-di-n-propylbutyramide, N,N-dimethylcyclobutyl- 2 carboxamide, N,N-diisopropylacetamide, and N,N- dimethyl-2,2-dimethylpropionamide.

The preferred condensing agent is POC1 and the best yields are obtained when about 0.4 mole of POCl is used with 1 mole of diaminomaleonitrile. The amount of condensing agent is preferably between about 0.33 mole to 2 moles or more per mole of diaminomaleonitrile. Other agents that can be used include POBr PCI or PCI (phosphorus oxybromide, phosphorus trichloride or phosphorus pentachloride, respectively) at a temperature of 0l00C and preferably in the range 10-50C.

Solvents such as tetrahydrofuran or acetonitrile can I be present in the condensation reaction. Excess amide 7 SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION The following are illustrative examples of the preparation of compounds of this invention.

EXAMPLE 1 2-Amino-3(N,N-diethylaminoethylideneamino) maleonitrile 1 ll cincNE: Poc|,

NC NC cu, I

NH NH To a solution of 10.8 g (0.10 mole) of diaminomaleonitrile in ml of N,N-diethylacetamide was added 10 ml (-0.l mole) of POCl over 10 min. The temperature rose to 50 during addition. The resulting solution was cooled, poured into 200 ml of water and neutralized with cone. NH OH. An oil separated which was taken up in ethyl acetate, dried and the solvent removed'to give a light yellow oil. Anhydrous I-ICl was added to an ether solution of this oil and a white precipitate formed. Recrystallization'from methanol-ether gave 13.8 g (57%) of adduct as the HCI saltgmp 1 1 86.

Anal. Calcd. for C I-I N Cl: C, 49.69; H, 6.67; N,

28.97 Cl, 14.67. I 1 Found: C, 49.40; H, 6.67; N, 28.65; Cl, 14.94. ir (nujol) 3600, 3360, 2240, 1640, 1600 cm". nmr (DMSO-d,,) 8 1.1, broad triplet, 6H; 8 2.20, singlet, 3H; 8 3.6, broad peak, 4H; 8 8.4, broad, 2H.

EXAMPLE 2 2 Amino-3-(N,N-dimethylaminoethylideneamino)-- To a solution A of 4.0 g (0.037 mole) of diaminomaleonitrile (DAMN) in 30ml of dimethylacetamide at 10C was added dropwise over. 10 min. 4.8 g (0.031 mole) of phosphorous oxychloride (POCl The temperature rose to 30C and the solution became thick with precipitate. After one-half hour 400 ml of cold water was added and the resulting solution was nmr (CDCl /TMS 8 2.15, singlet, 3H; 8 3.05, singlet, 6H; s 4.4, broad, 2H.

Heating this adduct at about 160C with dimethylformamide gives 2-methyl-4,5-dicyanoimidazole.

. 4 Anal. Calcd. for C, H l-l Cl: (3,5343; H, 7.47; .N,

25.96 Found: c, 53.12; H, 7.44; N, 26.11

' EXAMPLE 4 2-Amino-3(N,N-dimethylamino-1-cyclopropylmethyleneamino )maleonitrile hydrochloride NC NH,

A solution containing 10.8 g of diaminomaleonitrile, 20 g of N,N-dimethylcyclopropylcarboxamide, 100 ml of tetrahydrofuran and ml of POCI was stirred for 18 hr and the resulting precipitate was collected. Re crystallization from'methanol gave 8.7 g (36%) of 2- amino-3( N,N-dimethylaminol -cyclopropylmethyleneamino)maleonitrile hydrochloride as colorless crystals, mp 170172: ir (nujol)'32 00, 3100, 2200, 1645 and 1600cm' nmr (DMSQ d )0.7 l .38 (m, 4), 1.5 -1.98 (m, 1'), 3,308 (5', 6), 8.58 (b, 3).

EXAMPLE 5 2-Amino-3-( N ,N-dimethylamino' 2- methylpropylideneamin'o )maleonitrile hydrochloride Y CQM.

EXAMPLE 3 2-Amino-3-(N,N- diethylaminobutylideneamino )maleonitrile To a solution of 10.8 g (0.10 mole) of diaminomaleonitrile and 20 g of N,N- diethylbutyramide in 100 ml of tetrahydrofuran was added 10 ml of FCC]; over 10 min. After stirring for 1.5 hr the resulting tan solid was collected and recrys- From 16.2 g (0.15 mole) of diaminomaleonitrile and 4,0 g of N,N-dimethylisobutyramide run as in Example 1 4 there was obtained 12.2 g of 2-amino-3(N,N- dimethylamino-Z- met'hylpropylideneamino)maleonitrile hydrochloride.

'EXAMPLE6 2-Amino-3(N,N-dimethylaminopropenylamino)- maleonitrile- NMe,

tallized from methanol-ether to give 7.2 g (27%) of 2- amino-3(N,N- diethylaminobutylideneamino)maleonitri1e hydrochloride as colorless crystals, mp 188189: ir-(nujol) 3300-3000 (broad peak), 2185, 1640 and 1585 cm; nmr (DMSO-d 0.9-1.78 (m, 11), 2.32.68'(m, 2), 3.4-3.78 (m, 4), 8.58 (b, 2).

To a solution of 10.8 g of diaminomaleonitrile and 15 g of N,N-dimethylpropionamide in ml of tetrahydrofuran was added'lO ml of POCl in 10 min, The temperature rose from 27 to 39 over 20 min. There' \vas obtained 10.7 g tan powder which was'decolorized'with charcoal and recrystallized from methanol-ether to give 7.9 g of colorless plates of 2-amino-3(N,N-dime- EXAMPLE 7 2-Amino-3(N-methylaminoethyleneamino)maleonitrile hydrochloride NHMe NC H, o a N N= I CH;CNHMe POCI, I CH,

Nc NH, Nc NH,

To a solution of diaminomaleonitrile and 8.6 g (0.12 mole) of N- methylacetamide in 100 ml of tetrahydrofuran was added dropwise .10 ml of POCl over 30 min. This reaction was quite exothermic and the temperature reached 50. A precipitate began to form after -one-half of the F001;, had been added. After 3 hrs the precipitate was collected and rinsed with ether to give 14.2 g (71%) of 2-amino-3-(,N-methylaminoethyleneamino)maleonitrile hydrochloride as a light tan'powder. Off-white crystals were obtained by dissolving in methanol, treating with decolorizing charcoal and adding ether, mp 240-dec.: ir (nujol) 3300, 3050, 2200 (strong) 1675, 1645, 1600, and 1575 cm". 1 Anal. Calcd. for C,l-l N Cl: C, 42.1 1; H, 5.05; N,

35.08 Found: C, 42.41; H, 5.10; N, 34.72

The amino group of the amino-containing maleonitriles obtained as herein described can be reacted with reagents that react with primary amine groups. When the amidine of Example 2 (4.0 g) was added in portions to 20 ml of acetic anhydride and the resulting solution stirred for 1 hr, poured over 100 ml of ice-H O, the resulting precipitate collected and recrystallized from benzene there was obtained 1.25 g (25%) of colorless needles of 2-acetylamino-3-(dimethylaminoe thyleneamino)maleonitrile, mp l2l-l24: ir (nujol) 3100, 2195, 1650, 1560, 1500 cm"; nmr (DMSO-d 2.018 (s, 3), 2,138 (s, 3), 3.096 (s, 6), 9.258 (b, l).

, Anal. Calcd. for c,,,H,,oN,= C, 54.78; .H, 5.98; N,

10.8 g (0.10 mole) of gives xanthines which can be methylated as shown below:

O 5 11 NC N C I "s H.- T

HN N N 2 c N 10 H o N N- N I NaHCQ- l-l N me The compounds of the invention are useful as herbicides. Certain of the compounds control all plant growth and may be used to maintain industrial sites, right of ways, etc'.; while others may be used to selectivelyweed such crops as corn, soybeans and sorghum.

The rate to be used will depend upon the purpose of the application, the compound utilized, the soil type, rainfall, and other environmental conditions, and the weeds to be controlled. If one desires to selectively weed a crop, the proper compound and rate must be chosen and the compound is best applied preemergence to the crops and weeds. Rates used will ordinarily vary between one-half and 40 kg/ha (hectare), with the lower rates used for selective weed control-and the higher rates where the kill of all vegetation is desired. The

proper compound and rate to accomplish a particular task may be chosen by one with ordinary skill in the art.

The following tests illustrate the activity and utility of the compounds as herbicides.

40 Seeds of crabgrass (Digitaria spp.), barnyardgrass 5 and nutsedge tubers were planted in a' growth medium and treated preemergence with the compounds dissolved in a non-phytotoxic Solvent. At the same time cottom having five leaves (including cotyledonary ones), johnsongrass (Sorghum halepense) having four 5 leaves, crabgrass and barnyardgrass with three leaves and nutsedge (Cyperus rotundus) from tubers with two leaves were treated. At the low rate, bush beans with the third trifoliate leaf expanding were treated. Treated plants and controls were maintained in a greenhouse The imidazoles obtainable by the above' process are useful for the preparation of purine and substituted purines, and particularly substituted xanthine alkaloids.

for sixteen days, then all species were compared to controls and visually rated for responses to treatment. Tables l and 2 give the values for R, R and R in each of The latter include theobromine andtheophylline, and the compounds, and the results obtained.

have medicinal and/or beverage. uses. 4,5- Dicyanoimidazoles having a 2-substituent can be readily converted to substituted xanthines, e.g., hydrolysis of the dicyano groups gives the diamide in high 1 yield. The latter on treatment with sodium hypochlorite Rating Symbols C chlorosis 7 necrosis G growth retarded B burn H hormonal activity E emergence inhibition 6Y abcision of buds or flowers O no response 10 maximum response wherein R and R are each alkyl of 14 carbons or toycloalkyl of 3-4 carbons, and R is H or an alkyl of 1 carbon atoms.

2. A compound according to Claim V1 in which R is 5 a 1-4 Carbon alkyl.

TABLE 1 PREEMERGENCE HERBICIDAL ACTIVITY Rate Crab- Barnyard- Sor- Wild Nuts- Morning- Mus- Mari- R R and R (Kg/Ha) grass grass ghum Oats edge Cassia glory lard Radish gold CH, CH,CH, ll 7G 10E 2C 5C 0 10C lOC IOC 9C BC 2.2 0 1C 0 0 0 8C IOC lOC 4G 26 CH, CH, ll IOE 10E 9C 8C 0 lOC 10C IOC 10C 10C 2.2 9C IOE 9C 3C 0 IOC IOC 10C IOC IOC (CH,),CH CH, ll 9C lOC 0 9C 0 9C IOE 'lOE IOE IOE 2.2 3C 4C 0 3C 0 .4C lOC IOC IOC 4C CH,CH, CH, ll lOC 9C BC 6C 46 10C 10C IOC IOC IOC I 2.2 2C 4C 46 0 0 4C IOC 9C 9C 5C CH, CH,CH, CH,CH, ll IOE 7C 6C 7C 0 5C IOC IOC 10C 10C i 4G 0 0 O 0 IOC IOC 2C 66 C 1 ll IOC IOC 9C 10C IOE IOC IOE I05 10 10E CHQ CH CH, 2.2 8C 9C 9C lOC 5G IOC' lOC IOC 105 Rate Soy- R R' and R (Kg/Ha) Dock Bean Corn bean Rice Wheat CH, CH,CH, l l 9C- lOC SC SC 4C 5C 2.2 8C 0 0 0v 0 0 -CH, CH, ll IOC 8C 7C 7C 6C 60 2. 10C 7C lC 2C 3C 2C (CH,),CH CH, ll lOE 9C 1 3C 7C BC 6C 2.2 9C 7C 0 5C 0 IC CH,CH, CH, 1 l 10C 10C 8C 8C 4C 4C I 2.2 l0C 3C 3C 2C 2C IC CH,CH,CH, CH,CH, l 1 10C 56 3C 2C 6H 56 2.2 66 3G 0 '0 2G 0 CH, l l IOE 10E 9C 9C 3C BC 8H 9H CH CH CH, 2.2 10C IC 8C 7C 3C 7C Table 2 POSTEMERGENCE HERBICIDAL ACTIVITY 7 Rate Nuts- Johnson- Crab- Bamyard- Sor- R R and R (Kg/Ha) edge Cotton grass grass grass I Bean ghum CH, CH,CH, l l lOC lOC 3C 7C 2.2 2B 7B 4B 3B 4B: [0C 3B CH, CH, ll IOC 9B 7B 8C 9C 2.2 8C 58 (CH,),CH CH, ll 9C 10B 98 10B 10B 2.2 6C 9C 7C 6C 10B 7B 83 .ll 13 5C 5B 3B 6B CH,CH, CH, ll IOC lOC IOC IOC 10C V 2.2 9C IOC L1 58 8C 10B 58 10B .22 0 2C 58 3B 3B CH,CH,CH, CH,CH, l l 0 8B 6B 6B 6B 2.2 6B 6B 6Y 7 CH, ll 6C 93 I08 I08 108 v 2.2 8C 88 cu c CH, 1.1 lB ac 6C 38 3B The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

l. A compound of the formula N NH,

4. The compound of claim 2 in which R is methyl and R and R are ethyl; 2-amino-3-( N,N-diethylaminoe- 5 thylideneamino )maleonitrile. 

1. A COMPOUND OF THE FORMULA
 2. A compound according to Claim 1 in which R2 is a 1-4 Carbon alkyl.
 3. The compound of claim 2 in which R, R1 and R2 are each methyl; 2-amino-3-(N,N-dimethylaminoethylideneamino)maleonitrile.
 4. The compound of claim 2 in which R is methyl and R1 and R2 are ethyl; 2-amino-3-(N,N-diethylaminoethylideneamino)maleonitrile. 